Bobby pin opener



J. A. SEWOL BOBBY PIN OPENER April 10, 1951 Filed July 16, 1947 FIG. I.

INVENTOR. JOHN A. SEWOL Wm fl A TTORNE Y Patented Apr. 10, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I 2,548,561 BOBBY PIN OPENER John A. Sewol, Hempstead, N. Y.

Application July 16, 1947, Serial No. 761,302

2 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to devices pertaining to the art of hairdressing, and more particularly concerns devices for holding, mounting and dispensing hairpins, especially of the conventional bobby pin type.

In such pins, the legs or tines are kept in close engagement by the inherent springiness of the pin. When about to be used, a lock of hair is usually held With one hand, leaving only the other hand free to spread the legs of the pin for insertion in the hair. Ordinarily, the pin cannot be spread with one hand, so that other aids must be resorted to, such as the teeth, a garment, or a nearby article of furniture. Such methods are awkward and unsatisfactory.

According to the present invention, these prior difliculties are avoided by providing an attractive and useful device which keeps an adequate supply of pins available for immediate use, and requires only one hand for spreading and removal of individual pins, accomplished by a single, simple, and natural motion. This novel device is convenient for use by a professional hairdresser, while being so attractive in appearance and simple to operate that it forms a useful adjunct to any ladys dressing table.

It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide a novel and useful device adapted to provide support for and to readily dispense bobby pins.

Another object is to provide a combined support and spreader for such pins.

A further object is to provide an exceedingly simple and comparatively inexpensive device affording the foregoing functions and advantages, and useful by persons who make their own coiffures or by operators in beauty shops or barber shops.

Other objects and important features of the present invention are pointed out in or are implied by the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the inventiotn;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation view of the device of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a side elevation View of the same device, partly in section.

As shown in the drawing, the device of the present invention comprises a. base portion 9 l and a upstanding holder and spreader portion l2, either fabricated integrally with the base portion H or rigidly fixed thereto. The portion l2 has a Wide thin section It] at its upper end, its upper tip It being shown rounded off, although it will be understood that the tip may be square, tapered, pointed, or of other desired shape. The fiat section 13 serves to hold the pins, a plurality of which are shown at I5. These pins are placed upon the fiat section l3 by its engagement between the legs of the pins l5, their natural resiliency serving to keep the pins iii in place until it is desired to make use of them.

The fiat section l3 adjoins a section l6 of gradually increasing thickness, which in turn adjoins a bottom section I! contiguous with the upper side base II. A recess or opening i8 is provided in one edge of sections l6 and IT in such manner that the forward edge I9 of recess [8 has a gradually increasing dimension corresponding to the gradually increasing thickness of section I6. Preferably, this dimension increases more gradually than does that of the rear edge, although this is not essential. As will be described below, the recess l8 plays an important function in permittingeasy withdrawal of the spread pins, by use of but o'ne'ha'nd.

The base H is made fairly solid and weighty for stability, although this is not necessary, especially where it is clamped or held down. Preferably its bottom surface is covered as at 2| by a felt, rubber or similar covering to prevent marring of a table upon which the device may be placed, or to provide an anti-slipping surface where desirable. The base ll may be of any desired configuration and is shown, for illustrative purposes only, as circular in shape and rounded out internally to form a receptacle for pins or other small articles, or to serve as an ash-tray if desired. Where desired, the holder-spreader I2 may be rigidly mounted upon any structure, such as a table and the base portion I I may then be omitted.

As indicated above, the entire device is preferably molded in one piece or machined from a single piece of stock, although the base portion II and the holder-spreader portion l2 may be separately formed and then suitably joined. Suitable materials are wood, metal (such as aluminum), glass, ceramic, or plastic such as Lucite.

In use, the lower-most pin 22 grasped between the thumb and forefinger, preferably with the thumb on top and the forefinger underneath. Then the pin is moved downwardly, so that its legs are spread by the increasing thickness of section l6. Normally, for moving the pin downward, the fingers are too close to the closed end of the pin to be able to keep it open against its resiliency, should it be withdrawn. At this stage,

the recess 18 comes into play. The pin is held against the holder-spreader 12 by the third or fourth finger, while the thumb and forefinger are shifted toward the open end of the pin, as now permitted by recess [8, to once more grasp the two legs of the pin. A tight grasp upon the pin in this position now seems to keep the legs spread as the pin is drawn forward away from the holder-spreader l2. Alternatively, the pin may be pushed down and forward at once, if grasped firmly enough to keep it open.

Thus, in almost a single continuous movement, the pin is spread and removed in a position to be immediately applied to the hair. A sufiicient supply of pins can be stacked upon the flat section Is for a complete hairdressing. Of course, the length of section l3 can be chosen to satisfy any requirement in this respect.

As a further feature, in the tapered section IS the forward edge in which recess I8 is formed may be made narrower than the rearward edge, as indicated in Fig. 2, so that the pin may be spread in easier fashion and reducing the thrust against the holder-spreader [2 provided by the normal resiliency of the pin legs.

While the device embodying the invention has been illustrated as having parallel front and rear edges (except where recess 18 appears) it will be understood that these edges may be nonparallel or even non-linear, as desired.

While the invention has been illustrated in concrete form by a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be clear that many, apparently widely differing, equivalent structures can be devised,

and the scope of the invention is not to be limited 3 to the forms shown, but is defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A hair-dressing accessory comprising an elongated wide member of uniform width having a thin portion of uniform thickness at one end adapted to be engaged between the legs of hairpins to support a plurality of such pins in sideby-side relation and having a thickness gradually increasing toward the other end, whereby upon translating each of said pins toward the other end the pin legs are gradually spread, said member having a recess formed in one edge of the variable thickness portion, said recess being large enough to accommodate the fingers holding said pin to facilitate spreading and removal of the pin when in spread condition, by a single movement of the fingers grasping the pin.

2. A hairdressing accessory comprising a base member and a support and spreader element extending upwardly from said base member, the element being formed as an elongated wide member having a thin portion of uniform thickness and uniform width at the upper end adapted to be engaged between the legs of and to support a plurality of hairpins of the bobby pin type, and also having a thickness gradually increasing toward the bottom thereof, the front edge of the element having a thickness increasing more slowly toward the bottom than the rear edge, a recess being formed in the front edge in a varying thickness portion thereof, said recess being large enough to accommodate the fingers when grasping a pin, whereby a pin supported on the thin portion may be spread and removed with one hand by sliding the pin downward to the recess and then removing it forwardly from the recessed portion of the element.

JOHN A. SEWOL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,140,251 Steger Dec. 13, 1938 2,226,237 Cooper Dec. 24, 1940 

